Insider -- It’s not TV, because it has actors

Thursday

May 3, 2007 at 12:01 AMMay 3, 2007 at 3:19 AM

It’s not TV; it’s HBO.

You’ve likely heard this all-too-familiar slogan from the venerable pay-cable station, but unless you’ve actually had the privilege of sampling its goods, you’d likely leave it as little more than a clever play on words. But anyone who has an HBO subscription knows that the slogan says it all. HBO is not TV. In fact, I’m reluctant to even call it that.

Ryan Bray

You’ve likely heard this all-too-familiar slogan from the venerable pay-cable station, but unless you’ve actually had the privilege of sampling its goods, you’d likely leave it as little more than a clever play on words. But anyone who has an HBO subscription knows that the slogan says it all. HBO is not TV. In fact, I’m reluctant to even call it that.

Case and point, last Sunday night I, along with millions of other people nationwide, settled down to watch “The Sopranos,” HBO’s long-running mob masterpiece that for one hour each week (albeit for only 10 weeks at a time and months in between seasons) more or less manages to restore my faith in television. The dialogue, the interweaving story lines and the suspense leave virtually every other show on television in the dust, even those on the network’s stellar roster.

What’s more is that the show is merely five episodes away from ending for good, and for a longtime viewer like myself who has been following along since the beginning, the June finale could go down as one of the finest in television history alongside “MASH” and “Seinfeld.”

Sunday’s episode segued nicely into “Entourage,” another HBO staple. Although lighter and far less involved thematically than “The Sopranos” at its tamest, the show is nonetheless consistently fun to watch. Why? Consider the premise: a 20-something kid from Brooklyn hits paydirt as Hollywood’s hottest young star and takes his three best friends — manager and best friend Eric, has-been actor and half-brother Johnny Drama and errand boy Turtle — along with him for the ride. It’s classic escapism TV. Everyone at one point or another wonders what it would be like to be famous, and for about a half an hour each week, you can be. It’s simple and fun to watch, making it a home run for a broad audience.

Now having said that, it’s impossible to compare the likes of these to others on network television. While HBO admittedly has the upper hand as a pay cable service and can get away with a lot more in terms of content, it still doesn’t offset how poor and mindless much of standard cable and network television has become.

I mean, let’s be serious — “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?” The worst. To answer the question seriously, yes I am, and I don’t need a half-hour show to try and convince me otherwise (not to insult our younger readers, but when you get older you’ll realize how utterly absurd that question is).

OK, so that’s just one show. But there are plenty of other culprits:

· “American Idol” — How this show has become as popular as it has is beyond me. Marginally talented average Joes vie for a record contract against three judges seemingly hell-bent on exploiting and embarrassing them in front of millions of viewers. I’ll pass. What’s more is the winners more often than not fade into obscurity after the show wraps.

· “Armed and Famous” — If you managed to catch this gem during one of the four weeks it was on the air before being cancelled, you already know where I’m going with this. If not, celebrities pretend to be cops in a small Indiana town and hijinks ensue. If it’s possible, it’s even worse than it sounds.

The list goes on. What’s worse is even when a great show like “Arrested Development” falls into a netwtork’s lap (I’m looking at you FOX), they slash it to the ground to make room for more reality TV junk. Ugh. At least the FX network seems at least halfway interested in returning to the days of quality, scripted television (thank you “Rescue Me” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”).

In the end, it’s just sad that nowadays we have to pay for quality TV we used to get for free with shows like “Seinfeld,” “Newsradio” and others. I’ve even found myself yearning for “ Friends”— a show I was never much a fan of — in our current state of lackluster television. And while shows like “The Office” and “30 Rock” provide a glimmer of hope, there’s still a long way to go to restore my faith in standard cable.

Until then, I’ll be living off a steady diet of “Sportscenter” and “ Curb Your Enthusiasm” reruns. Works for me.